Her white dress decorated with sparkling gemstones reflected the light of the swaying lantern. She put a thin coat over her slender shoulders and a golden dragon hairpin and ornate floral and butterfly ornaments in her black hair. Rouge had been applied to her little white face.

Her hair ornaments swayed in the wind coming from somewhere.

Small jewels hit against each other and clinked.

A soft and sweet fragrance came out of the incense sachet hung somewhere in the room.

She was so beautiful the sight of her broke his heart.

“Why do you have those ornaments in your hair?”

“Are you sneering at me now?” She asked in a sullen voice, trying not to cry.

“Why should I sneer at you?”

“I…” She couldn’t finish her words.

Nonetheless, he chuckled, which made her shiver.

He always wanted to see her face to face, but he couldn’t even hug her. She was so beautiful tonight.

He turned around and came to her bed. When he stopped before her, she flinched and trembled.

She closed her eyes.

He unknowingly reached out and swept his hand across her cheeks. Her face felt soft like a baby’s. Her tightly closed lips shone in red. He wanted to touch her lips, which he dared not to kiss and put his hand down to her chin.

‘If I can touch her lips, if I can feel the moistness of her red lips, can I stop there?’

He was not confident. As always, he was not confident whenever he faced her like this.

So, he just swept his hand across her young jawline. His tender hand touched her earlobes and reached her neck. The ornaments on her hair fell one by one to the floor.

Clink, clink.

The ornaments clinked against each other with a clear sound.

Finally, the golden dragon hair shining in her hair fell and fell to the floor like other ornaments.

As the ornaments fell out, her hair also fell.

Her dark, long hair slipped on her dress which was while like a snow field.

When he gently pushed her forehead and she fell back stiffly on the bed.

Her black hair scattered here and there across the bed. As the coat on her shoulder slipped down, her slender shoulders were exposed. She frowned and looked at him with trembling eyes. Her red lips parted.

‘Can I calm down my troubled feelings if I sleep with her?’

But obviously she would be hurt. He couldn’t hurt her feelings.

He wished she would not be hurt or sick under any circumstances even if he were stabbed, torn or injured millions of times.

He wanted to hug her warmly and say, “I love you, I love you,” but he was not courageous enough. He was not sure if she really wanted his confession. Above all, he was afraid of being rejected.

Watching her undressing for a moment, he stepped back and sat on the chair.

There ensued silence between them.

He was sitting with his back against the chair. The smile on his mouth did not go away.

His smiling face was more handsome than ever as he closed his eyes and his long lashes swept across his cheek. The sharp ridge of his nose was high, and his exposed jawline was sharp.

Finally, he opened his mouth.

“Your baby…”

His voice was soft and deliberate as if he were trying to calm down his anger and frustration as best he could.

“If it is a baby girl, she is going to be the crown princess, and if it’s a baby boy, he is going to be the crown prince after me. As a girl, she will enjoy the luxury that no women can enjoy and grow up in abundance and will eventually marry her partner from a royal family of empire or the prince state. As a boy, he will be the next crown prince after me and rule the Mok Kingdom when he becomes the emperor.”

He spoke softly, but every time he spat out words, his mouth felt dry.

“The baby will be born as my blood and grow up as my blood.”

He tried to make sure his voice did not tremble when he spoke.

“When I become the emperor, the baby will be the only crown princess or crown prince. You are going to be the Queen, and I’m going to send Ruhae to a prince state on the periphery of the Mok Kingdom to make him its king.”

She opened her eyes wide in astonishment. Her breathing again broke his heart.

He couldn’t speak any further.

Neither he nor she went to bed.

Time flowed silently in the darkness. The sun was shining through the window.

When the sun reached Bipaan sitting on the chair, he rose. Then he went straight to the door.

He was about to open the door to leave when he suddenly turned and looked at the bed.

“By the way, do you know what my name is?”

He felt bitter when he asked her. He had never forgotten her name Woorum meaning ‘cold rain’ from the moment he first heard her name eleven years ago.

But foolishly enough, he did not even think of letting her know his name, so she did not know his name.

“My name is Ahn, and my last name is Danmok. Ahn Danmok.”

Having said that, he went out of his room.

‘If I, not Ruhae, had greeted her on the spring day when she arrived in the Mok Kingdom, would I have treated her differently? What would have changed?’

It was already too late for him to regret. He decided that he would end their relationship once and for all by telling her his name just like she left after telling him her name on the spring day many years ago.

It was over.

There were many people around him who left.

Following Emperor Ohyulje who left on the path of no return, Crown Prince Bipaan succeeded the throne as expected.

Crown Prince Bipaan, now Emperor Chonghyolje began an iron rule from the moment he assumed power. The bureaucrats who resisted his iron rule early on began to cooperate after realizing that his rule was not a tyranny of the empire but a means to make the kingdom a great power.

After he solidified his power as the emperor, Chonghyolje appointed his brothers, formerly princes of the four palaces, as kings of the prince states on the periphery of the empire. They were nominal kings, though. His purpose was to expel them from the Imperial Palace to stop their threat to his power before they could move against him.

He established an unprecedented succession system. In the past, the royal family of the Mok Kingdom had four heirs, called Sabanggung or four princes. But Chonghyulje promoted only one Crown Prince as the next emperor candidate. He was none other than Dohwan born to Kyosul and Ruhae.

Unlike the previous emperors, Chonghyulje didn’t take any other wife after Kyosul left.

As he didn’t live with his second wife Kyoyoung, he didn’t have any other child.

Accordingly, only Crown Prince Dohwan was his legitimate successor.

This kind of legitimacy strengthened his stature further, and Chonghyulje’s absolute emperor system made the Mok Kingdom stronger and prosperous. And he was respected as the Chonghyolchon, the Great Emperor, for his brilliant achievements.

As he brought about the great period of stability and prosperity, Chonghyulje had nothing more to hope for. All he wished was that Dohwan would grow well and succeed him. Although he was cold-hearted to everybody as usual, he was kind and gentle to Dohwan only. Dowhan also respected him from the bottom of his heart and accepted his rule as God’s intention.

Dohwan grew up smart and healthy. Watching him growing well, Chonghyulje was very happy, but he felt heartbroken as his brother Ruhae came to his mind when he saw Dohwan.

He loved and cared for Dohwan more than anyone, and exactly twenty years after he succeeded the throne,Chonghyule made a bombshell announcement that no one expected.

“I’m going to retire as the supreme emperor, and the Crown Prince will take over my power as the next emperor.”

As he ruled the kingdom for 20 years amid the love and support of the people with his absolute power, his sudden announcement shocked the kingdom. In no time they accepted the new emperor, Dohwan.

Nonetheless, as the supreme emperor, Chonghyulje still had power and influence, and provided strong support for the young new emperor, called Dongyoungje.

Dongyoungje established an excellent cultural kingdom on the strong foundation laid by his father. Now the Mok Kingdom enjoyed a brilliant and splendid glory that no other country could covet. Thanks to the rapid progress in the cultural field, he was praised as the “Cultural Emperor.”

It had been four years since Dongyoungje became the emperor.

Although he was only 27 years old, he made the Mok Kingdom a cultural powerhouse thanks to his excellent abilities and the unconditional help of Taemunjang, the head of the National Academy.

Dongyoungje respected and followed Taemunjang who was nearing 50. He even respected Taemunjang more highly than Taegongsin who was the next most powerful after the emperor. In fact, Taemunjang took the initiative to culturalize the Mok Kingdom. As such, he earned Dongyoungje’s trust.

Today, Taemounjang was meeting with Dongyoungje alone.